A Very Special Visit

Beating first day jetlag with a ferris wheel ride!

In early July, I was blessed with the visit from a dear from from the States, Suzanne. She and I got to know each other in a small group just after I graduated from college, and we have stayed in touch ever since! She was a bridesmaid in my wedding, and we always make it a point to see each other when we are back in Chicago. But this time around, we got to spend a whole week together! And because Suz left her kids and hubby at home (who we missed, of course), we got lots of uninterrupted time and that was a treat. It was so special for me to show her our life here and our beautiful city, as well as to go on some special adventures just the two of us. We spent the day in Budapest, a city I'd been wanting to visit for years, and it was fun to explore it together. We ate lots of delicious food, played tourist in Vienna and hung out with my kids, of course, too. Here are some photos from our time together!

In front of Stephansdom in downtown Vienna

Relaxing at the Therme (thermal baths)

In front of Karlskirche (Karl's Church)

Riding some ride at the Prater Amusement Park

Suz and I did the swings that go 117 M high!

Climbing the tower of Stephansdom

The Grand Market in Budapest

The top of Gellert Hill in Budapest

Budapest Parliament

Riding the Ubahn! (Subway in Vienna)

Girls' Night Out!

Riding the train at Schönbrunn Palace

Downtown gardens

Pastries at the famous Cafe Central

Practice, Practice, Practice!

Some fellow students on the hike (being around high school
and college age kids can make you feel a little old.)

**Note: click the images to see them full screen!

Last Friday, we took part in an adventure with our language school. Our language school offers a large variety of opportunities to visit important cultural locations and learn about the history and cultural significance that goes along with those places. We also get valuable time to speak the German language both with teachers and other language learners.

This time, a large group of us took a bus up to a local mountain called Kahlenberg. It has a beautiful church on top that commemorates the famous Siege of Vienna and the Polish king Sobieski who rescued the city. We got to see the beautiful view and then hike down the mountain (the hike up is a lot more intense than the hike down). I (Nate) would like to ride my bike up it some day, even though it is pretty challenging!

 An important part of the outing was getting to practice German as we walked down the mountain. It is very important that we have these opportunities to speak outside of class and practice naturally expressing our thoughts and experiences. It is also fun to get to know classmates and teachers outside of the more structured classroom setting. We learn everyday words that may not come up in class (like the word for mosquito) or ways of expressing ideas or experiences. So take a look at the photos and enjoy!

The view from the top!

You can just see famous buildings in the main part of the cities.

A Global Reunion

My senior year of college, I was blessed to live with three wonderful women. We shared so many special memories together, both serious and completely silly. Since that time, God has led us each on a unique journey and we have literally gone global! In 2004, we were all senior students at Wheaton College. Now, we are a missionary to orphans in Uganda, a missionary teacher at a school in Moscow, a PhD student at Dartmouth, and me - a missionary appointee to Austria. God has led us apart, but it is so amazing to see how each of us are following the Lord and using our gifts for the Kingdom!

Last week, we had the rare opportunity to reunite in Chicago for 3 days. Furloughs and travel schedules aligned and we spent the week laughing and sharing and reminiscing. Here are a few photos from our "global reunion".

Cori, Me, Sarah and Rebecca

Hanging out at Rebecca's

One afternoon, the spouses watched the kids while the girls went out. Here are Rebecca and Cori, exploring all that downtown Elmhurst has to offer...

Nate gets to know Rebecca's littlest one, Jonathan.

Taking a funny face photo is an important tradition

Hanging out, sharing stories and playing games...it was a great week!

Best Use of A Prayer Magnet

Yesterday at the park we saw a great use for our prayer magnets.  Who knew they tasted good?